


no one cares about the cup of coffee

by emblems, sylveonimbus (cloud_sakura)



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Belligerent Sexual Tension, Canon Continuation, M/M, Sexual Tension, Slow Build, less of an au, more like, not a coffee shop au, swim coaches au too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-28
Updated: 2015-02-08
Packaged: 2018-03-09 10:21:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3246071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emblems/pseuds/emblems, https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloud_sakura/pseuds/sylveonimbus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>the first time makoto sees sousuke after their graduation sendoff, they’re at university and sousuke is breaking (ripping it out, stomping all over, the works) some poor girl’s heart.</p>
<p>he does not expect it to lead to becoming the next bestselling work: <i>how to babysit a yamazaki sousuke unit 101</i>. coming this spring.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. prologue: cinnamon roll

**Author's Note:**

> alternative title: "I Never Said That"
> 
> you'll learn why later

There’s a whole plate of cinnamon buns in front of them, and there’s a chorus of thanks before the others dig in. Makoto looks up at Takao-san, who shoots him a grin, the conversation forgotten in favor of the sweets.

The only one who doesn’t have a cinnamon bun on the table is Yamazaki, and he’s wrinkling his nose at all of them, even though the only smell wafting through the air is the heavenly sweet scent of cinnamon (and the fumes from Yamazaki’s noxious-looking coffee, which Makoto’s forced to endure since he’s sitting beside him). He’s like a black sunspot in the middle of the group, clutching his half-filled cup of coffee defiantly in one hand,and hunched over like it’ll help him maybe disappear from the five girls who are currently all looking at him.

When the girl in front of him asks if he’d like some of her cinnamon buns, Yamazaki goes through a spectacular choking fit (Makoto is reminded of the time Rei swallowed pool water, because Yamazaki looks and sounds like a dying fish) and shakes his head violently.

The girl looks like she wants to go through the floor in embarrassment, and Makoto quickly distracts her by asking if she wants to give him some instead.

For some reason that prompts Yamazaki into another choking fit. Over the noise, and with an arched brow, Takao-san announces that it’s time for them all to go home because half of them have tests tomorrow. Over the confusion and the counter-arguments, Makoto spots the other boy looking so relieved that he takes pity on him.

But just for a moment.

“Hey, Yamazaki, can I talk to you for a second?” And for the second time that day Makoto tugs on Yamazaki’s sleeve, leading them both towards the back. Takao looks back with an arched brow, but Makoto waves her on.

She smirks—knowingly? can she smirk knowingly when Makoto doesn’t even know why she’s smirking?—and Makoto doesn’t quite know how to feel about that, but he won’t think about that just now.

He turns to face Yamazaki with a set jaw.

“What is  _wrong_  with you?” Makoto snaps. “Earlier, I mean—she was just being nice, you know? You could’ve taken it even if you didn’t want her to be interested in you.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” Yamazaki says plainly. “I just hate cinnamon.”

Makoto decides, not for the first time that day, that Yamazaki needs either God or an intervention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the first time sousuke sees tachibana after their graduation sendoff, he’s outside a library and he’s nearly free of his stalker forever until tachibana decides it’s a good idea to steal her heart instead.
> 
> fuck you too, tachibana.
> 
>   
> 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they're off to a grand start, really.

_a few hours prior:_

Makoto is a patient person. At least, he thinks so. Haru says that he’s good with children, and that’s probably why he gets along with the kids at the swim club, and probably why the coach gave him the job. Girls, apparently, like him. It’s a little strange, because he was clumsy and not the best at conversation, and he always thought they liked more stoic types, like Haru—or perhaps Rin, who is effortlessly charming. Maybe even Yamazaki.

Turns out they _do_ like Yamazaki, and this is how he finds out:

He’d been catching up on homework in the library that day. In the process of trying to adjust to hundreds of new people and starting conversations and making friends, on top of the complete chaos that is his Tokyo district, especially after the calm familiarity of Iwatobi—

Well, really, it’s no surprise he’d made the uncharacteristic mistake of nearly forgetting that there’s going to be a test next week. After apologizing to his pouting deskmate for not being able to attend the group outing she was setting up, he’d made a beeline for the library.

Anyway, he has plans to be elsewhere after this (hopefully home, soon, ensconced in his bed and maybe Skype-calling his parents because he hasn’t done that in two days), so he bookmarks his notes and the page of the reference he was reading, shoves them in his bag, and checks out at the counter.

From this angle he can see out of the open windows, the sunlight streaming down on top of the people standing outside the library in the corridors, the small potted plants on the running ledge along the wall, which is kind of a moot point since there’s an entire garden outside anyway, the two dark heads standing next to each other—

He blinks as he recognizes the taller black-haired man outside, speaking at a rushed pace and low volume, but still faintly audible from where Makoto’s standing.

Yamazaki has been in Makoto’s classes since the first day, when he’d met his eyes across the aisles when he entered the room and never said a word to him, choosing to only sit behind him. Makoto had wondered if he’d even recognized him. He had been wearing glasses, and he wasn’t anything extraordinary to look at. Then again, he wasn’t very good at striking up a conversation either. At least, not with him of all people. He didn’t even know what they had in common besides swimming. And a mutual friend in Rin.

On the other hand, Makoto’s a naturally curious person, and he’d really wanted to know what Yamazaki was talking about with that girl outside, so he had quickly checked out and stepped outside, catching the last few lines of the conversation.

“So you mean - there’s nothing I can do?”

“You couldn’t do _anything_ to make me happy, for God’s sake, take a hint,” Yamazaki says, his voice exasperated, and Makoto reels back a little, shocked at his bluntness.

“Yamazaki-san…” the girl begins again.

This time Yamazaki pulls at his hair and says in a clipped tone. “Look...” He trails off. It takes Makoto a moment to realize he’s trying to remember her name.

Yamazaki gives up very quickly—Makoto’s brow shoots up in sheer ‘are-you- _serious_ ’ disbelief. “Look, I know you like me a lot, and it’s making me uncomfortable. I can’t go out with you.”

He barely manages to stifle his gasp of horror. It sounds like Yamazaki has never rejected a confession in his life (and okay, maybe Makoto has rejected one too many, but there’s this thing called human decency that is apparently missing from Yamazaki’s metabolism), and this entire business clearly needs an intervention. Makoto toys with the idea—even though the mere thought of it makes him cringe—but then the girl catches hold of Yamazaki’s arm, and gives him this intense kind of look as she continues to speak, and _ooookay_ the last thing Makoto wants is to witness a private moment, so he backs into the wall and starts sliding away from all of the secondhand embarrassment floating his way.

Except his phone rings, breaking that train of thought. He flips the cover open to see a text from Takao-san, his deskmate.

_From Takao to Tachibana_

oi adorable kouhai of mine, i’m pretty sure i can see you standing right outside the library. we haven’t left for the group date yet. wanna go?

He shoots off a reply saying yes, looking back and grinning at her waving from the stairs along with a few other classmates, and then realizes that the talking in front of him has stopped.

Makoto slowly gulps as he looks up at a nonplussed face. “Tachibana?”

Well, shit.

“I can’t believe you remember my name,” he says offhandedly, and then bites his tongue when he sees the girl right behind him looking like she’s about to burst into tears. He can vaguely recognize her now as Oda-chan from one of Takao-san’s classes (probably art, now that he thinks about it, he’s seen her puttering around Takao-san during off periods).

And because Makoto is simply too nice for his own good (and there might be other motivations, like making a point of how to be a decent human), he turns to Oda-chan and says: “Hey, do you want to come along on our group date? Takao-san will be there, and it’s close by.”

Yamazaki stares. “Wait, what—”

Makoto’s smile becomes a little strained. “I’m sure Yamazaki-kun here will be only too glad to accompany you as well.”

It takes a great deal of willpower to keep the vitriol from his voice—he’s pretty sure it might show through on his smile, though. It might have twitched at the corner.

Yamazaki’s eyes widen, as though the realization that he might have fucked up is beginning to dawn on him. “ _Wait_ , wh—”

“Y’all are taking too long!” Takao yells at them from the stairs, and everyone in a thirty meter radius winces at the rapid rise in decibels. “Tachibana, d’you want me to come and get you? Someone wants special treatment, huh?”

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Makoto laughs, and turns back to the others. “So, are you coming?”

“I’d—I’d love to!” Oda-chan says, looking very much like her entire day has been turned around, while Yamazaki looks more than a little constipated.

Makoto’s dislike of him in this particular moment skyrockets. If Yamazaki is going to go out of his way to make people feel uncomfortable—well, it’s only fair Makoto does the same.

“I’ll take that as a yes, then!” he says, as he grabs Yamazaki’s sleeve, leading him down the corridor, talking casually to Oda-chan as he does.

Yamazaki’s aversion to this entire situation, while obvious, barely makes a dent in Makoto’s smile.

He’s good with children, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so cloud is currently doing the worm  
> i (emily) am at a loss for words because i'm not sure i can believe this is happening because this fic has been months in the work so 
> 
> we're excited!!
> 
> our joint fic tumblr is [here](http://beautifulstaminaroll.tumblr.com), if you're interested! there's not much at the moment but we'll be answering asks as they come in. and posting snippets, bloopers, and general hijinks as we go. welcome to our little adventure!!  
> 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> seriously why does sousuke even bother keeping rin around if all he's going to do is insist sousuke make _friends_

It's during their monthly phone call (something they're trying out to avoid losing touch, because it, uh—well, it didn't end too well last time) that Sousuke mentions it. Not that he'd really meant to make it a topic of conversation, because there are other things Sousuke would like to talk about other than the way Tachibana Makoto seems to hate him, but it slips out, and—

“You really can’t expect me to believe you.”

Well, Sousuke isn’t sure if Rin is amused or just confused.

He decides on a mix of both. “Rin, seriously, why would I lie about this?” He certainly doesn’t know how he found himself in this particular situation and yet, here he is.

Rin seems to chew on a few replies before finally saying: “I don’t know, but I do know that there’s no way Makoto could hate you this quickly. No way in hell.”

“I’m telling you, the guy is not interested in being my friend.”  
  
There’s a pause on the other side of the line. Sousuke knows that kind of silence. “What are you thinking, Rin?”

“I’m not thinking anything!”

Sousuke sighs. “Rin.”

“Well—” There’s a shuffling sound on the end of the line. Sousuke, in mind’s eye, can see Rin adjusting his position so he lies face up on the bed, looking at the ceiling—as Rin does. “Look, Makoto doesn’t just dislike people for no reason, Sousuke. That’s just not in him.”

“Well, he dislikes me, so by that logic you’re saying I gave him a reason.”

“I’m saying you’re not exactly the gentlest soul, Sousuke.”

Sousuke frowns, thinking back through his interactions with Tachibana. “Well, I was talking to a girl the last time we ran into each other—”

Rin groans. “Say no more. You put your foot in your mouth again, didn’t you? I told you should figure that out so you didn’t run into this exact situation, but you never listen—” And then Rin starts throwing in a few curses, and Sousuke can’t do anything but roll his eyes and wait it out.

When Rin stops to draw breath, he jumps in: “You done exercising your inner drama queen?”

Rin splutters on the other end of the line, and Sousuke can’t help but smirk.

“Seriously, Rin, it probably isn’t even a big deal.”

“You say that now, but just wait. I can’t imagine Makoto makes for a good enemy.”

“He has the attitude of a kitten, Rin, you expect me to be worried?”

“That’s not true, and you know it. You should know better by now than to underestimate someone.”

“I’m a good judge of character!”

“Nitori Aiichirou, Mikoshiba Momotarou, Ryugazaki Rei, Nanase Haruka—”

Sousuke cuts him off: “Okay, fine, point taken.”

“I’m not even halfway through the list—”

Sousuke can see that familiar, smug smile. “Rin.”

Rin chuckles. “Just—” And he sobers now: “Give it some thought, would you?”

Sousuke takes a deep breath. “I’m not making any promises.”

“... That’s not a no.”

“You’re relentless.”

“But you knew that.” Sousuke grumbles. He can still hear the smirk in Rin’s voice. “Anyway—still going out for that swim club job?”

“Already talked to the owner—said I was a good bet but there was another guy he’d have co-coaching, wanted to see us work together, especially since these are kids—”

“Coaching kids—wait, is that high schoolers or…?” He can hear the gears in Rin’s head turning.

There was no avoiding this now. “Elementary school. Ages seven to nine.”

There’s a pause. Sousuke knows what’s coming, but he’s still unprepared for the laughter that comes from the other line. He holds the phone a good distance from his ear, waiting for Rin’s guffaws to die down. Once Rin’s caught his breath, Sousuke asks:

“You done?”

“It’s just—” Rin is still breathing in sharp breaths as he tries to get his giggles under control. “You? Coaching little kids?”

“I coached Momo and Ai, didn’t I? It’s basically the same thing.”

Rin doesn’t deny that, at least—Sousuke takes his small victories where he can find them. “Just don’t make any kids cry, okay? If I hear anything about how you’re a monster that hates kids I will fly down there—”

“Please try to keep your drama queen tendencies to a minimum, Rin. It’ll be fine.”

“You’re clearly forgetting that time we visited the beach—”

“Look, it wasn’t my fault! I didn’t see him, he ran in front of the volleyball—!”

“You hit him right on the nose!”

“One time! One time I make a kid cry—”

And then Rin is laughing again, and Sousuke wonders why he continues to put up with this idiot.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so cloud and i both got consumed by school which is why this took so long  
> BUT it's a double update so keep going. :D
> 
> [psa: our blog is [here!](beautifulstaminaroll.tumblr.com) follow for shenanigans, previews, and screenshots of our skype convos.]


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> makoto's friends are absolutely zero help. he might just file claims for new ones (not really, but they could at least pretend they're trying to help).

He has anatomy with Sousuke.

And comparative literature.

He might very well die.

Okay, maybe not, but he thinks he might have to talk to a specialist regarding the potential aneurysm he’s likely to have by the end of the semester.

Yamazaki is, for lack of a better word, an ass. And a jerk. And self-absorbed.

And it’d baffled him at first, because Yamazaki is not what one would call arrogant or vain (though Makoto does find himself wondering how much time and money Yamazaki spends on those eyebrows because there’s no way they look like that on their own). No, it has more to do with the way—and there’s no kind way to put this, honestly—he doesn’t seem to think about anyone else.

He’ll lean back in his chair right into someone’s personal space.

He's already been late to anatomy  _twice_ without any kind of remorse. 

He’ll yawn obnoxiously loud in the middle of class. And then he’ll _borrow a pen and never give it back._  

There’s just no acknowledgment whatsoever. None. It does, at least, explain the way he spoke to Oda-chan—he just didn’t take a moment to consider, to care how the words would land.

Makoto isn’t sure if it’s supposed to be reassuring, knowing that Yamazaki isn’t so much malicious in his intent so much as…

Apathetic.

Explaining it to Haru is particularly interesting, because in this regard Makoto can’t help but see the similarities between the two.

Not that Makoto would ever say that to Haru—being compared to Yamazaki would be probably be considered an insult.

_have you tried telling him?_

Makoto looks at the last text from Haru and sighs.

**_No, because telling you things never really worked, so I doubt it will work on Yamazaki._ **

Makoto deletes that entire message and tries again:

**_Somehow I doubt he’d listen to me. I mean, he has no reason to._ **

_you’re makoto. that’s reason enough._

This time Makoto can’t help the look he gives his phone, furrowing his brow. Nagisa would call it his “100 percent done with the world but especially Haru-chan” face.

**_Haru, *you* don’t even listen to me that much._ **

_i’ve known you forever_

**_What does that have to do with anything?!?!???_ **

_it just does_

Well. Good to know Haru would be of little help in this regard.

He thinks about texting Rin, but hesitates—what’s the protocol for texting someone about your frustrations with that person’s best friend?

He’s spared the trouble when Rin texts him on WhatsApp the next day.

_wanna tell me why sousuke thinks you hate him?_

**_I don’t hate him!_ **

_severe distaste?_

**_No!_ **

_mild distaste???_

Makoto sighs.

**_Maybe._ **

_yeah, i get that._

Makoto blinks at his phone in surprise. He starts to type a response, but Rin beats him to it.

_i know what you’re thinking, makoto_

_how could i say that sousuke is my best friend blahblahblah_

_but i’ve known this guy for years, trust me, i know what you’re dealing with right now._

What did Rin even _mean_ by that? Makoto shakes his head and taps out a response:  _So how did you deal with it?_

_give it some time and you’ll start to get it_

So Rin was joining Haru in the ranks of the “absolutely zero help” squad. 

Makoto's lack of reply prompts another message from Rin:

_seriously, get to know him and you'll be surprised._

**_He doesn’t seem interested in that._ **

_give it time. you’re makoto, no one can hate you forever._

Makoto can’t help but smile—even if Rin's advice is useless at the moment. It's all Rin is willing to say on the matter, too, because after that he moves on to Ran and Ren, asks about the presents he sent them from Australia, and then he asks if Makoto has heard from Kou and Nitori about Iwatobi and Samezuka, respectively, and Makoto allows himself to be distracted.

“That your girlfriend?” the girl sitting behind him, Masuko-chan, says, peering over his shoulder, and Makoto makes a flustered noise (he refuses to admit it's a squawk). “No, he’s one of my swimmer friends from high school!”

“Boyfriend?” she asks, her eyes twinkling, and Makoto definitely does not like that twinkle.

“Masuko-chan, you’re really going to end up offending someone who doesn’t know you one of these days.” The back of his neck feels particularly sweaty.

“Mmm, but at least I’ll have you,” she says nonchalantly, and Makoto’s not sure why, but it feels like support, even under her obviously joking tone. “Introduce me to those swimmer friends of you sometime, hmm? They look particularly fit.”

“ _Masuko-chan_!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is cloud, and no, i am not basing off masuko-chan off me.
> 
> emily is probably looking at me in an exasperated manner right now. oh well.
> 
> (introduce them to me, makoto. do it.)
> 
> [thank you to everyone for your lovely comments so far! we can't express how much it means to us. <3]


End file.
